Animation Guild | We are 839 Digital Magazine
Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1546404
FALL 2026 15 D E PA R T M E N T A F T E R H O U R S FALL 2026 15 be steady and precise with both your arm and your wrist: "Your arm can't make the broad stroke. You have to use your wrist to pivot." To ensure longevity and manage pain, Untoria has started doing wrist stretches and massaging his hands between appointments. "I know a lot of animators tend to develop carpal tunnel and arthritis," he says. "I have to keep reminding myself not to grip the [tattoo] machine so hard, but it's difficult since it's vibrating in my hands." At a tattoo studio, the average workday is unpredictable. Because Untoria manages his own schedule, he may see up to five people in a single day. Tattoos can take anywhere from one to 12 hours to complete. And since like most artists he uses social media to market himself, he can be booked out anywhere from a couple of weeks to a month in advance. Untoria has worked on numerous animated series over the years, including HouseBroken, Hailey's On It!, The Freak Brothers, and Kevin, and many of the people coming to him want animated characters. Pokémon and Studio Ghibli characters are especially popular. But occasionally he'll get a request for something that is outside his wheelhouse. "Fortunately, one of the benefits of working in animation is having to be adaptable to different styles," he says. As the animation industry shows slow signs of rebounding, the most recent production jobs Untoria has gotten have been short-term freelance gigs, and it's been a while since he's found consistent work. "I love animation," he says. "I love the storytelling of it. I love the characters and drawings, but it doesn't seem to want me back. Tattooing has been really good to me so far. I get to meet a lot of cool people [who] also love animation—it has reconnected me to the reasons I love the medium so much." You can see more of Untoria's tattoo work at www.instagram.com/alex.inks.u. —Sonaiya Kelley above: Untoria tattooing a client at Broken Hearts Tattoo; Many of Untoria's designs include popular characters, including (from left) Luna Ghost from the live-action Scooby-Doo; Sabrina, Abra, Kadabra, and Alakazam from Pokémon; Growlmon from Digimon; and Shenron from Dragon Ball.